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[6] A final obvious appeal to American nationalism is the tagline of the advertisement, the underlying message being “a declaration of independence.” The young woman has already declared her independence, and now it is your turn. Doesn’t every young woman want to be in that green field, hair blowing in the wind, wearing a confident look outlined against an American flag and clean, carefree, endless blue sky?

[7] Lastly, the advertisement utilizes several implicit arrows that point to the actual product of tommy girl perfume. The white writing against the dark blue jean jacket catches the eye first, encouraging the reader to continue in the traditional, left to right order. When the writing stops, we are naturally pointed toward the product. In addition, the young woman’s hair, seen earlier as an extension of the American flag, is flurrying out and somewhat downward. We follow the hair to its end, where it seemingly kisses the product’s cap. All visual indications of direction in the advertisement lead the viewer to an inevitable end: the irresistible scent of tommy girl perfume.

[8] But we might also look beyond the ad’s overt messages, and examine its effects on the viewer and our society as a whole. Returning to the ad’s portrayal of the young woman, we are shown a girl with a natural beauty, free of worries or cares about conforming to the pressures of society as a female. Jean Kilbourne (2003) argues that countless ads tell women to search for freedom and independence through being thin, as echoed in the ad’s skinny and attractive young woman. Kilbourne actually refers to another tommy girl ad that uses the same tagline: “‘A declaration of independence,’ proclaims an ad for perfume that features an emaciated model, but in fact the quest for a body as thin as the model’s becomes a prison for many women and girls” (p. 263). She argues that ads encouraging a search for feminine independence often promote the worship of the thinness ideal, as well as the dilemma of being a successful and powerful woman while remaining “feminine” and unthreatening (pp. 262–264).

[9] Additionally, the ad for tommy girl perfume is also effective because it “takes on the trappings of a movement for social justice,” according to Thomas Frank (1997, p. 187). Frank describes how advertisers constantly link products with the rebellious, revolutionary political and social movements of the past in order to conjure the vehement emotions associated with their resounding emotional content. The tommy girl ad emphasizes typical patriotic American images—like the American flag and denim clothing—as well as the phrase a declaration of independence, which explicitly creates a connection between the perfume and the American colonists’ revolutionary pursuit of liberty in their beliefs and behavior during the American Revolution.

[10] Yet in reality, this marketing of liberation is paradoxical; although this freeing message promotes rebellion and nonconformity, it actually supports the market economy and feeds into capitalism and conformity. When advertisers employ political protest messages to be associated with products, they imply that buying the product is a form of political action.

[11] But lastly, the ad gives another paradoxical message with the portrayal of the beauty of the American, unspoiled, natural environment. Another typical American image is of the untouched landscapes, green pastures, and cloudless blue skies of the open frontier, which serves as the ad’s backdrop. The ad’s clear blue sky with the American flag flying freely in the wind encourages the viewer to link the beauty of the natural American landscape with the purchase of tommy girl. Sut Jhally, editor of the video Advertising and the End of the World (1998), would argue that the ad’s purpose—the consumption of the product—is paradoxically putting the environment at risk. Our “freedom” to buy all of what we need (and especially, what we don’t need) is essentially spoiling the natural surroundings that we romanticize. And so